Insanity?
by Meta Knight Forever
Summary: When Meta Knight begins to see his dead friends come back, he begins to question his own sanity.
1. Chapter 1

**_I do not own Kirby characters in this story, as much as I wish I did. Enjoy!_**

_Meta Knight walked up to a rusty gate. As he approached, the gate swung open, and then broke off its hinges and fell with a clang. He stopped, feeling nervous, and noticed a sign that was hanging by one chain above the entrance. He tried to read it, but it was in a language he couldn't recognize. So he walked ahead into…a cemetery. Meta Knight stopped again to take in his surroundings. Time and weather had caused the graves in front of him to crumble. Most had crumbled enough so that he couldn't read some of the names. The grass was unkempt and dying. 'How appropriate,' Meta Knight thought and began to move forward again. It wasn't until then that he realized he had no idea where he was going. But his feet seemed to know, because he couldn't stop until he was in the back corner of the cemetery. There, he saw three graves lined up in a row. He looked at them and was able to make out the names. The one in the corner was Jecra's, Knuckle Joe's father. The one in the middle was Garlude's, Sirica's mother. The last one in the row was Sir Arthur, leader of the Star Warriors. Meta Knight looked down and realized he was carrying a wreath with white flowers dotting the edge in his left hand. Cautiously, he reached over and placed it on Jecra's grave. He tensed, but nothing happened. Exhaling, he withdrew his hand. But before he could get it away from the grave, a dirt- encrusted hand shot out from the ground and latched itself onto Meta Knight's wrist and began to pull. Shocked, Meta Knight leaned back and tried to yank himself free. But the decomposing hand held on tight. Thinking fast, he reached down and pulled out his sword, Galaxia. But before he could use it, Galaxia disintegrated, leaving Meta Knight with only a hilt. Desperately, he tried to beat the hand with the stub, but the hand just pulled even harder-_

Meta Knight woke up with a yelp and yanked his left arm away from the bony hand that was never there. Gasping, he looked over at his accomplices, Sword Knight and Blade Knight, who were snoring peacefully in their beds. With a sigh, he looked over at the clock on his bedside table. It was 3:13 in the morning. Deciding to get up for the day, Meta Knight reached over his clock and picked up his mask. He put it on and then went to go get the rest of his armor.

Once he finished getting dressed, Meta Knight went to the kitchen. He wasn't exactly hungry, but he had a few hours before work started and he didn't feel like sleeping again, especially not after that nightmare. He thought about his nightmare as he poked around in the refrigerator. It didn't seem like some of his usual nightmares. Then he grinned. He supposed his subconscious was getting sick of flashbacks and had decided to create a new nightmare. His eyes glowed pink, then turned back to amber as he shut the refrigerator. None of the food in there had caught his interest. So he just went off to make himself some tea.

Meta Knight sat down at the dining room table with his cup and raised his mask so he could sip it. Sword and Blade were still sleeping, so he didn't have any problems with taking off his mask at the moment. Of course, Sword and Blade knew what he looked like, but he preferred not to remind people he wasn't as threatening-looking underneath his mask. He put down his cup and stared into it, lost in his thoughts…

Suddenly, there was a creak that came from behind him. He looked over to find that their front door was opening. He stood up, confused and suspicious. He was pretty sure nobody had knocked, and he was bewildered to even find that somebody besides him was up this late. He put his hand on his sword as he waited to see who would come in.

The door stopped opening, and then Meta Knight saw a figure slip into the room. He couldn't make out much, as the room was still dark, but he could tell from the brief moment that the figure had been in the light that the person had spiky blonde hair and a mask.

"Who's there?" Meta Knight called out. He heard a faint rasping, but no response. Meta Knight pulled out Galaxia.

"All right, I want whoever just walked into the room to come into the light with their hands raised!" There was still no response. Meta Knight walked into the kitchen and took a flashlight out from one of the drawers. He clicked it on and shone it around the room. Nobody was in the kitchen. He left and went into the dining room. He shone it around the room, and the beam of light glinted on something metal before the metal thing disappeared before it could be seen.

"Hey, wait!" Meta Knight called out, and as soon as he did there was a loud CRASH. He pointed the flashlight in the direction the thing had gone. It fell upon a corner of the room, where the person had accidently rammed into the wall. It bounced off and found itself in the light. What Meta Knight saw nearly made him drop the flashlight.


	2. Chapter 2

It was Jecra.

Meta Knight took a step back, shocked and confused. Jecra took a step forward, staring at him, and Meta Knight noticed something off about him. The armor he was wearing was hanging off him like it was too big for him. Also, the eyeholes in Jecra's mask used to show two brown eyes. Now they were looking at Meta Knight like darkened pits. Jecra took another step towards Meta Knight, and Meta Knight pointed Galaxia at him. Jecra took note of this and laughed. It was a strange sound, like a rasping cough, not at all like the laugh Meta Knight remembered. Then the thing spoke.

"Well, Meta Knight, it seems you've changed since the years I've been gone." Jecra said this in a deep, grinding voice that chilled Meta Knight to the bone. "You weren't always so quick to pull out your sword, especially to an old friend."

Meta Knight calmed himself before speaking. "You aren't my friend. I don't know who you are, but you should know that Jecra has been dead for years."

The figure seemed to stare at Meta Knight for what seemed like hours. Then, so suddenly that Meta Knight didn't react fast enough, Jecra was in his face. Meta Knight tried to back up, but he found that he was already leaning against a wall. There was nowhere to back to. Jecra then reached up to his mask and pulled it off. Meta Knight gasped.

Underneath the mask was a skeleton. The skull was decaying and broken in the place where Meta Knight's sword had long ago hit it. The sockets where his eyes would have been were looking in the same direction as Meta Knight and gave him the feeling that they were looking deep into his being. The corpse seemed to smile at his discomfort.

_That's putting it lightly, _Meta Knight thought faintly.

The skull smiled an even more hideously creepy smile, as if it had read his mind and was amused by it. "Well, here's a news flash for you, Meta Knight," it said. "Your friend is back and rearing to go." The smell of death was coming off the corpse now, and Meta Knight gagged at the smell, barely able to breathe. Jecra laughed the cruel laugh and then replaced the mask. As quickly as he had come forward, he was suddenly on the other side of the room. Meta Knight watched the thing as it walked towards the door as calmly as you pleased. Just before it left, Jecra looked back at him.

"I hope you liked that little nightmare I sent you," he said. "It will give a warning about what's to come."

Then he was gone.

Meta Knight stood there, staring at the door. Then, he realized he was trembling violently. He walked forward and shut the door. He leaned against it, as if someone unwanted was trying to break in.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Sorry for the late update, but I'm not a consistant person. I do not own Kirby, in case anyone was curious._**

"I told you, Sword, it was just a dream I had. Forget it."

"But sir-"

"I said _forget it_!"

Sword opened his mouth to protest, but then was elbowed by Blade. He shook his head. Sword shut his mouth and they both walked out the door of their room without another word. Meta Knight watched them go and sighed. _I wish, _Meta Knight thought as he walked out the door to go guard.

Meta Knight was more than willing to overlook the fact that he woke up leaning against a door and say that Jecra had been just another nightmare. He was willing to overlook the fact there was a cup of cold tea on the table and say he was dreaming. That it was a sleepwalking incident. It would be believable to those who didn't live with him. However, Meta Knight had never walked in his sleep in his life, and Sword Knight and Blade Knight both knew it. He sighed again and jumped up onto one of the castle walls. Below him, Tuff and Kirby were playing soccer, while Tiff was leaning against the opposite wall, reading, as usual. Watching them normally gave him a sense of ease, but not today. What Jecra had said was beginning to bother him.

_I hope you liked that little nightmare I sent you. It will give a warning about what's to come._

What was that supposed to mean? Meta Knight wasn't sure, but he did know that Jecra had sent the first nightmare before showing up in person. He contemplated this as he watched Tuff and Kirby try to kick their ball into the goal chalked onto the wall. It wasn't working too well, because Tuff kept kicking Kirby instead of the ball. Tiff was yelling at them, and Tuff was arguing. Kirby was "poyo"ing at them. Meta Knight leaned in a little to try and make out the words. Then, so suddenly that he wasn't expecting it, he was yanked off the wall and onto the stone floor. Meta Knight jumped to his feet and pulled out Galaxia. He turned around and gasped.

He was looking into the face of a skeleton.

He jumped back in surprise and pointed his sword… at nothing. Confused, he looked around, and saw no one was in the hallway with him. Meta Knight glanced over the edge of the wall, but nobody was down there, either. Tiff, Tuff, and Kirby must have gone in to get lunch. Sighing, he put away Galaxia and walked away.

As soon as Meta Knight walked away, a figure appeared from behind the fountain. It watched him walk away with dark eyes before turning to the figure that had been hiding with him.

"See? He didn't even shout," he said. "His pride is what's keeping us from being discovered."

The second figure nodded. "Once he discovers what's going on, it will be too late." The figures grinned wickedly at each other before laughing. Then they walked away to continue with their plan.

**_I wasn't too happy with the ending, but I was too lazy to fix it. Ch4 coming soon...I hope :)_**


	4. Chapter 4

**_Sorry for the late update guys. I'll be sure to do better next time. I do not own any kirby characters._**

**_Also, a special thanks to Dark Lady of the Sonnets for helping me edit the story._**

Meta Knight wandered dazedly through the corridors, wondering what was going on. His eyes glowed green as he tried to come to a conclusion. He thought maybe the king had ordered a monster that could animate dead bodies, but he'd never heard of one with the capability to do that. A shape shifter might be able to look like a dead body, but the shape shifter would have used Jecra's actual voice, not that harsh one Meta Knight had heard before. Then there was the skeleton he had just seen. It looked familiar, but he was having problems putting a name to the face…or skull. Meta Knight stopped and gazed up towards the sky. Something was definitely happening here at Castle Dedede, and he was going to figure it out.

Meta Knight had no idea, that, as he attempted to sort the clutter in his mind, he was being watched.

A lone figure stood on top of a hill that overlooked Cappy Town. He opened his eyes and grinned underneath his helmet. Meta Knight hasn't guessed yet. That meant the plan was working. A wind blew and gently lifted the figure's cape into the air, toying with it before letting it sink back to the ground. He began to head for Castle Dedede, knowing his part in the plan was coming soon. With every step he took there was a loud _clunk_, and his foot would shift around inside the golden armor.

Meta Knight stealthily walked through the halls of the castle, avoiding Waddledees whenever necessary. He reached two large wooden doors, paused, then cracked the door open.

The throne room was surprisingly. Meta Knight guessed that King Dedede was probably eating or wrecking havoc down in Cappy Town. It didn't matter; he would be out of here before the King realized anyone had entered. He opened the door all the way and walked in, shutting it behind him in case any Waddledees walked by, and went to approach the throne. He looked at the control panel, which held the buttons the king used to order monsters from Nightmare Enterprises. He pressed the one in the right corner, and a television screen opened up.

On the screen, instead of the short salesman with sunglasses and a designer suit, there was a kid wearing a tie over a blue suit, his feet up on the desk.

"Hey there, Tub-WHAT THE-?" Knuckle Joe took his feet off the desk in surprise, and looked to his left and right, making sure he hadn't attracted attention. He turned back to the screen and spoke in a low whisper.

"Meta Knight, what are you doing?" he said, looking nervous. "I might get caught!"

"Sorry, Joe, but I wouldn't bother you if it wasn't absolutely urgent," Meta Knight said.

"What is so urgent that you had to talk to me?"

"Well…I was wondering if Dedede ordered any monsters lately."

Knuckle Joe frowned. "I don't remember him buying any since last week, and you said Kirby destroyed it, right?"

Meta Knight nodded, remembering Kirby's easy triumph over Odomok, a large lizard-like monster. "Did Nightmare send any kind of monster to Dreamland without the king's consent?"

Knuckle Joe shook his head. "I would have known if he did, as I work the downloading system."

Meta Knight frowned. "How often are you at that post?"

"I sit at this desk 24/7." Knuckle Joe said. He narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

Meta Knight hesitated, wondering if he should tell Joe, but then decided against it.

"Only doing my job. I'd better go before we both get caught, Joe. Good-bye."

The screen went blank, then went back into the wall a few seconds later, leaving the throne room as it was before Meta Knight entered.

Meta Knight sighed. So his problems weren't being caused by Dedede or Nightmare, but something evil was definitely brewing here. He could tell. He turned to leave, but was forced to duck as a sword swung at his head. Meta Knight pulled out Galaxia and straightened up, sword poised to strike. He gasped at the sight before him.

A puffball about his size wearing golden armor was facing him, a dirty sword in his hand, at the ready. Green hair was pulled back in a ponytail on the back of the helmet. Meta Knight recognized the figure as Sir Arthur, leader of the Star Warriors. Normally, purple eyes would be seen through the V-shaped slit in the helmet, but instead, the only thing there was blackness. Suddenly, the thing spoke in a voice similar to Jecra's skeleton.

"Hello, Meta Knight. It's been so long since we talked face-to-face." Meta Knight stared at Sir Arthur. He wanted to move, but the thing transfixed him. "You're probably wondering what I'm doing here, how I'm here, why I'm here, and many other things that are flooding through your mind. However, I'm not here to answer your questions." Sir Arthur pointed his sword forward towards Meta Knight and charged.

Sir Arthur was almost on top of him. But just as the being slashed his sword downward, Meta Knight's sword went up to meet it. Galaxia clanged as Sir Arthur's filthy sword hit it. For a few seconds they stood there, pressing the two pieces of metal against each other. Then Arthur jumped back and struck out again, aiming for parts of exposed flesh. Meta Knight parried the attempt and hit the sword around the hilt. It went flying across the room, now of no use to its wielder. Meta Knight pointed Galaxia's tip into the slit in the helmet. There was a hiss that came from inside it. Then, before Meta Knight could react, Arthur reached up and yanked off the helmet.

Meta Knight knew what to expect, but couldn't contain a yelp of surprise at the sight of Sir Arthur's skeleton. The putrid thing grinned at him, its empty eyes boring into him.

"Your skill has improved," it said, now, glancing at the sword pointed at him. "But I hope you realize that I am dead, and cannot die again." Arthur stepped forward, impaling himself. A dark liquid oozed from where the sword was implanted, but the thing just kept grinning. Meta Knight yanked Galaxia backward, but the liquid clung to it, keeping it inside Arthur's head. Arthur turned his head with surprising strength and threw Meta Knight against the wall. Meta Knight felt the wall behind him crack before he fell forward. His back ached, but he ignored it as he got up. Galaxia was still jutting out of Arthur's forehead, and Meta Knight lost his preferred weapon. Arthur cackled as he pulled Galaxia out of his head and threw it to the far side of the room. Then he pulled out a knife and charged at Meta Knight. Meta Knight stepped backward, and put a hand behind his back. Arthur was closing in when Meta Knight brought around his whip and latched it onto Arthur's weapon. There was a brief tug-of–war, but Meta Knight pulled Arthur's weapon out of the thing's hands. It soared through the air, and he caught the knife by the blade. The blade bit into his hand, tearing a large gash in his hand, but he barely noticed as he ran forward and plunged the knife into his dead leader's foot. Meta Knight hadn't expected anything to happen, but was pleasantly surprised when the thing screeched, then crumpled into a pile of dust.

He wiped the knife off, and brushed a little dirt from his hands. Surprise attacks like these were not going to be tolerated.


	5. Chapter 5

**_I'm aware that I'm late with this, and lo siento for that. If I get too many flames, I'll revise it._**

**_I do not own Kirby...last time I checked, anyway_**

Meta Knight spent most of the day avoiding the throne room and King Dedede. He expected the king to be furious when he found his throne room in less-than-perfect condition. Meta Knight shuddered every time he thought about what would happen if Dedede found out it was he who had caused the damage.

But as the day wore on, Meta Knight began to wonder why the king wasn't trying to figure out who had wrecked his throne room. Deciding to look into it, he snuck down to the throne room once again and opened the door a crack.

This time, King Dedede was sitting in his throne, snoring rather loudly. Escargoon was unconscious next to him, a huge bump on his head and King Dedede's hammer lying innocently next to him. Meta Knight entered the room and looked around. The throne room looked exactly as it had before Sir Arthur and Meta Knight had dueled.

_This can't be right, _Meta Knight thought. He ran his gloved hand over the wall that had cracked when he was flung against it. _The Waddledees couldn't have fixed the throne room this quickly, even if the damage had been minimal._

Meta Knight stood there, confused; until he heard the king's snoring falter, then stop. Before Dedede opened his eyes, Meta Knight ducked behind a pillar and waited. Dedede snorted once, and then he woke up fully. Meta Knight heard him shift position in his throne, and he thought for a minute the king was going to leave. But then he heard a loud _thud_, and Dedede yelled "Escargoon, you lazy slug! Wake up!" The snail came to and Meta Knight spent the next few hours waiting as they insulted each other. Escargoon was mad at Dedede for hitting him with the hammer, and the King was ticked off that Escargoon would dare yell at him. The fight ended when Dedede lost his temper and hit Escargoon with his hammer again, knocking the snail out once more. Dedede then attempted to talk to Knuckle Joe, but Joe had left up a sign that read:

The Salesman is out

Come back soon

So Dedede left to go get something to eat in the dining hall, and Meta Knight took that opportunity to leave. By this time, the sun had set and moonlight spilled in through the throne room window. He glanced out the window for a brief second, and then left to go to his room.

Sword and Blade were off getting dinner in the kitchen, so Meta Knight was alone in his room. The room was only lit by the crescent moon outside the window. Meta Knight paced restlessly back and forth, thinking hard.

Why wasn't there any damage in the throne room? There may not have been much, but there had definitely been damage in the throne room. The king should have had a fit. Waddledees should have been working to fix it, something! Suddenly, a thought occurred to Meta Knight:

_What if there wasn't any damage to fix?_

But that was absurd. He'd been there, he'd seen the fight. He was even a part of it! At the least, the Waddledees would have had to vacuum Arthur's remains….

This reminded Meta Knight that he had no idea how he managed to kill Arthur, and what if something like this happened again? He wouldn't be able to defend himself unless he figured out how he'd defeated Arthur. He replayed the event over and over in his mind, trying to-

_Creeeak._ Meta Knight stopped pacing as he heard the door open, then close. He stared at the wall as he listened to the footsteps entering the room.

"Sword, Blade, we have a problem." Meta Knight said. He waited for their response, but there was none. Slowly, he turned around.

No one seemed to be in the room with him. He was as alone as he'd been a few minutes ago.

But as Meta Knight turned his back on the door again, he felt something brush by him. He turned, but found himself facing nothing once more. Meta Knight tensed, waiting for the next sign that something was-

_WHAM! _Meta Knight was hit from behind and slammed face-first into the wall. Quickly, Meta Knight pulled himself away from the brick and looked around the room, unsheathing Galaxia.

Whoever it was had refused to show itself once again. Galaxia sagged in his grip as Meta Knight reached up and rubbed his aching forehead through his mask. He could already feel the bump beginning to grow. Suddenly, Meta Knight heard the door creak open again. He jumped, startled, and then began to run after it. He wasn't going to let the creature get away! He grabbed the door just before it closed, yanked it open, rushed out…and nearly impaled Sword Knight as he and Blade tried to enter the room!

**_This chapter probably made you throw up, and if it didn't. then may I commend your strong stomach :)_**

**_I'm going to be late again on the next update. At least now you know..._**


	6. Chapter 6

**_I know, I know, this is really late. I'm sorry for that, and I hope you can forgive me. This chapter isnt high quality, but then again, neither are the rest of them._**

**_I do not own Kirby characters in this story, and anyone who says I do is a liar :) Enjoy_**

"Gah, Meta Knight! Watch where you're swinging that!" Sword yelled as he jumped backwards from Galaxia's tip. Meta Knight stopped, sheathed his sword, and stepped back.

"My apologies," he said. Meta Knight looked beyond Sword and Blade down the hall, but there was no one in sight. "Um… did either of you two happen to notice someone besides me leaving this room?"

Sword Knight and Blade Knight looked at each other, and then shook their heads simultaneously. Meta Knight sighed in a frustrated manner, but kept his voice steady.

"I thought not." He stepped beside the doorway to allow his two subordinates into the room. However, neither of them moved. They both looked at Meta Knight, and though he couldn't see either of their faces, he knew they were giving him a confused and, quite possibly, a slightly suspicious look. Blade cleared his throat, and then spoke.

"Um… Meta Knight, Blade and I were, well… We're wondering if you know that, you know…"' Blade looked at Sword for help.

"What Blade is trying to say is that…If you need to talk about something, we're here for you." Sword shifted uncomfortably, and there was an awkward silence.

Meta Knight looked at both of them carefully before speaking.

"Thank you for that. Actually, I believe we need to talk about something that's been going on around the castle anyway." He gestured for them to follow him, and entered himself. Sword and Blade hung around in the hallway shocked. Then, Sword turned to Blade.

"I can't believe that actually worked," he said in amazement. Blade nodded, as shocked as Sword. Then they entered the room and sat down on the floor in front of Meta Knight's chair. Meta Knight sat down in that chair and considered both of the knights again before taking a breath and continuing.

"Last night, I had a strange dream about some of my…er…deceased friends…"

Meta Knight went on to explain the events right up to the mysterious force that had just left the room. He waited as they absorbed the information and made their judgment about his claims. Meta Knight hoped that they would believe him, but there was a nagging voice in the back of his mind.

_What if they don't believe you? What if you turn out to be crazy? _Meta Knight considered it for a few seconds, then pushed the thought as far back as it would go. He wasn't crazy, and he knew it. But the thought was not going to leave Meta Knight alone so easily.

_I'm sure that's what lots of people say before they got sent to the mental asylum. Face it, your next to go! _

Meta Knight was yanked away from his thoughts as Sword began to speak.

"So, if NME isn't behind this, then who is?" Meta Knight let out an internal sigh of relief, and then became serious.

"If I knew, this wouldn't be a problem." Meta Knight stood up from his chair and began to pace. Sword and Blade watched his progress as he went back and forth across the room.

Sword spoke up. "Maybe Kabu knows."

Meta Knight stopped pacing and looked at Sword. Sword thought at first Meta Knight was going to yell at him, so he was pleasantly surprised when Meta Knight nodded.

"Alright, let's go."

Half an hour later, in the still of the night, Meta Knight, Sword Knight, and Blade Knight all stood in front of the giant tiki Kabu. They stood, staring at the statue for a minute, and then Kabu spoke in his giant, rumbling voice.

"YOU COME TO SEEK ANSWERS FROM KABU."

Meta Knight knew this was a statement rather than a question, but he nodded anyway. "Kabu, something is going here, and I was wondering if maybe you knew anything about it." Kabu was silent.

Sword Knight took a step forward. "Please, Kabu, any information you might have could help us a lot in solving the problem." Still, Kabu said nothing. Blade Knight just glared at the giant tiki, then turned to the others.

"Meta Knight, he's not going to tell us anything. We should just go." Meta Knight glanced at Kabu once before nodding. They hadn't taken more than a couple steps before Kabu spoke again.

"I KNOW OF THE PROBLEM YOU SPEAK OF." The three stopped and looked back at Kabu as he spoke again.

"I HAVE LEARNED FROM OTHER OLDER ONES LIKE ME OF AN ANCIENT MAGIC THAT WAS AROUND BEFORE EVEN NME EXISTED. THIS MAGIC ALLOWED THE USER TO BRING BACK THE SKELETONS OF LOST WARRIORS AND LOVED ONES. THE PEOPLE WHO WERE BROUGHT BACK WERE MORE POWERFUL THAN THEY WERE ALIVE, BUT ALSO MORE EVIL, AND WERE UNABLE TO DIE BY ANY NORMAL MEANS OF KILLING A LIVING BEING. THE ONLY WAY THEY COULD DIE IS IF THEIR LEADER PERFORMED A COUNTERCURSE THAT WOULD TURN THEM INTO A PILE OF BONES OR IF THE LEADER HIMSELF WAS KILLED. IT IS BELIEVED THAT IF THE CREATOR DIED OF NATURAL CAUSES, HOWEVER, THE ARMY WOULD LIVE ON AND FOLLOW THEIR LEADER'S LAST ORDERS TO THEM. LONG AGO, AN OLD SORCERER HAD CREATED A LARGE ARMY OF THESE UNDEAD CREATURES TO TRY AND RULE THE UNIVERSE. MANY CIVILIZATIONS WERE LOST TO THE AWESOME MIGHT OF THESE WARRIORS. HOWEVER, IN AN EFFORT TO PROTECT THEMSELVES, ONE PLANET'S ARMY MANAGED TO KILL THE LEADER OF THE UNDEAD WARRIORS, AND THEREBY TURNING THE REST OF THE ARMY INTO PILES OF DUST. THE SORCERER DID NOT LEAVE ANY RECORDS OF HOW THE CREATURES WERE MADE OR WHERE TO LOOK FOR OTHER RECORDS, SO THE MAGIC WAS ASSUMED LOST. BUT META KNIGHT, YOU HAVE SEEN OVER THE PAST COUPLE DAYS THAT SOMEONE AS FIGURED OUT THE SECRET TO THE UNDEAD WARRIORS, AND IS USING THIS MAGIC AGAINST YOU."

**_ch 7 will be a lot faster, I hope. thanks for reading._**


	7. Chapter 7

_**What can I say besides sorry for the delay. I could list excuses, but I don't think anyone would forgive me.**_

_**I do not own Kirby characters, but wouldn't it be awesome if I did? For me, anyway.**_

The next morning, Meta Knight was up before the sun rose. He crept out of the room quietly so as to not wake up Sword and Blade. Then, Meta Knight went over to one of the walls surrounding the castle to watch the sunrise. The castle was quiet this morning, as most of the castle's residents were asleep. A few birds sang, but other than that, the morning was silent and still.

Or was it?

Meta Knight glanced down and, by chance, saw something flick around the wall's corner. Quickly, he ran over to the side of the wall and peered over. Below him, a shadowed figure could be seen running along the wall. Before it vanished around another corner, Meta Knight saw, in the light of the rising sun, a flash of metal and, if he was correct, blond hair.

Meta Knight, with a sense of dread building up in his stomach, quickly jumped down off the wall. He hit the ground and felt a jolt go through him from the force of the landing, but he ignored it and went running after the figure. As he rounded the corner, he quietly pulled out Galaxia and looked around.

As he suspected, the figure had been Jecra. Jecra had his back to Meta Knight while he was looking at the fountain. Meta Knight slowed, deciding to take the corpse by surprise.

But as Meta Knight inched closer, he realized that the skeleton of Jecra was talking to the water in the fountain.

"When should we execute this plan?"

Meta Knight strained to hear the response, if there was one, as he continued to move forward, but Jecra answered quickly after he asked his question.

"If that's what you wish. I'll report back after we're done."

This time, Meta Knight was close enough so he that he could hear another person responded to Jecra's statement.

"Don't fail me, Jecra."

Meta Knight frowned. That voice seemed tauntingly familiar, and yet he couldn't quite grasp where he'd heard it before. Then, he realized Jecra was on the move again, and he resumed following him quietly.

This time, Jecra didn't stop until he was at the entrance of Whispy Woods. Meta Knight hid behind some bushes near the entrance when he saw that Jecra had stopped and watched as Jecra pulled out something from his pocket. From his position, it looked like some kind of keychain. Suddenly, a loud, high-pitched noise came from the thing Jecra was holding. Meta Knight flinched and held his head, trying to block out the sound. But as quickly as it started, it stopped. Meta Knight looked over again to find that two more figures had joined the skeleton of Jecra. One he recognized immediately as Sir Arthur. Meta Knight bit back a groan at the thought of having to defeat the powerful warrior again.

He distracted himself by trying to figure out who the other figure was. The other figure was taller than Sir Arthur, but only a couple inches shorter than Jecra. Light lilac hair was held back in a ponytail, and a battered headband pushed bangs out of the skeleton's face. Meta Knight gasped suddenly.

"Garlude," he whispered to himself, but he never realized he had spoken out loud. Luckily, none of the figures heard him. They were to busy talking amongst themselves.

"What's the next step, Jecra?" Sir Arthur asked in his rasping voice, sounding eager.

Jecra grinned wickedly under his mask. "We have orders to publicly humiliate him. If the new spell worked correctly, nobody will see us." The other to skulls grinned evilly at him. Garlude spoke up.

"Did you have anything specific in mind?" Her voice was like Sir Arthur's and Jecra's, except it was slightly higher pitched.

"Why do you ask?" Jecra said in a playful manner. Garlude shrugged.

"Well, I had an idea that we could take off his mask in the busiest place in Cappy Town." Garlude creepy smile grew wider. "As in, where everyone can see his face."

Sir Arthur began to laugh, and this laugh chilled Meta Knight to the bone.

"Could you imagine the look on his face?" Arthur said, finally managing to calm himself. "We should bring a camera!"

Jecra had an amused look in his dark eyes. "We'll talk about it. I've got some stuff to do first, and we can work out the details of the plan tonight."

Garlude and Sir Arthur nodded to him, then turned and retreated into Whispy Woods.

Jecra turned to go, so Meta Knight decided to make his move. He ran out from behind his hiding spot and, before Jecra had time to comprehend what was happening, Meta Knight struck him across the skull with the flat of his blade. Jecra flew backward, hit one of the trees marking the entrance to the woods and lay still.

Meta Knight sheathed his sword and walked over to the skeleton of is friend. It was time to get some answers.


	8. Chapter 8

**_You know, I think this is my fastest update ever. Awesome! Hope you like it._**

**_I do not own Kirby characters, because if I did, things would be very different... :)_**

Meta Knight managed to drag Jecra down to the dungeons of Castle Dedede. He was headed towards the table in which they had tortured Escargoon to get rid of Erasum, but paused when he came across a chair. Changing plans, Meta Knight moved towards it. He pushed Jecra into sitting position on the chair, strapped him in, and removed his prisoner's mask. Then, Meta Knight went over to a grey panel next to the chair, waiting.

As soon as Jecra began to stir, Meta Knight reached up and spun a dial. Jecra suddenly began to yelp and pull himself around in the chair as much as the bindings would allow. The dial that Meta Knight had turned triggered small needles filled with poison to inject into Jecra. Meta Knight waited thirty seconds, and then turned off the machine. Jecra slumped over as the needles receded. He glanced over at Meta Knight's cold glare and grinned.

"Well, it seems the great Meta Knight has managed to capture me," Jecra said sarcastically. Meta Knight stepped up to him, forcing himself to look into the sockets of Jecra's face.

"You, Jecra, are going to answer some of my questions." Jecra's grin faded and was replaced with an angry expression.

"And what happens if I won't?" he challenged. Meta Knight said nothing. Instead, he walked back over to the panel and twirled the dial again.

This time, Jecra didn't react as the needles were injected through his body. When the small pains subsided, he smirked.

"Is that the best you can do to me?" Jecra teased. "Poison won't do anything to make me talk."

Meta Knight's eyes turned pink, which confused Jecra. What was there to be amused about?

"Well," Meta Knight said. "This chair has more functions than what I've just shown you. We'll find something here that'll persuade you."

"Where the heck is he?"

"Don't worry, Sword. Meta Knight'll turn up."

Blade was sitting in front of the TV, watching a comedy show on Channel DDD. Sword paced back and forth behind him, worried. They hadn't seen Meta Knight all day, and it was sunset now. It was beginning to worry them.

Or, at least, worry one of them.

Sword stopped his pacing long enough to glare at Blade before continuing his pace. Blade seemed completely unconcerned about the whereabouts of their master, and it was doing nothing for Sword's mood.

Sword sighed, and then glanced out the window at the sky. The sun was almost down. "Maybe we should go looking for him-"

"Sword, you're forgetting something about Meta Knight," Blade said, cutting Sword off. "Meta Knight is only found when he wants to be found. He'll turn up on his own."

Sword gaped at Blade, who, thinking he had won, turned back to the TV. Sword was right about to strangle him, when the door flew open. Both looked over to see Meta Knight had entered the room, eyes shining with triumph. He walked right up to them, and glanced at Blade before turning to Sword.

"Ready the Halberd," Meta Knight said. "I have found information that could help us get rid of the skeleton problem."

Before Sword could say anything, Meta Knight had vanished again. Blade got up from his spot, turned off the television, and went to stand next to Sword.

"Told you he'd show up."

"Shut up." Together, the two knights went off to the fountain in the courtyard.

After the first attempt to defeat NME, pieces of the Halberd had managed to find its way back to Cappy Town, mostly through the monster delivery system in the form of robotic monsters bent on destroying Kirby. Though these monsters exploded, Meta Knight, Sword, and Blade managed to gather up scraps and rebuild the Halberd. The last piece, the bow to the ship in the shape of Meta Knight's mask, had come a week ago with Odomok. This piece, like so many of the others sent by Nightmare, had been damaged from a combination of the fight with Kirby and NME's fun with the objects. They'd fixed it up the best they could, but the one thing they could do nothing about was the mark over one side of the bow. From a distance, it looked like the ship had a scar over one of the eyes.

Sword and Blade entered the control room to find Meta Knight was already starting up the Halberd. They took their positions at the control panel and helped prepare for takeoff. That was when Sword noticed something strange.

"Sir?" Meta Knight glanced up from what he was doing to look at Sword.

"Yes?"

"You haven't put in our destination." Meta Knight turned back to what he was doing.

"So it seems."

"But why?" Blade asked, glancing at the screen Sword had up.

"Because we don't have an exact location yet." Sword and Blade looked at each other in confusion. Meta Knight looked over at them, but they didn't question further.

In Cappy Town, things were going as usual. Chief Bookum was in his rocking chair at the front of the police department, snoring softly. Kawasaki was cooking his usually terrible food in his restaurant. Curio was off looking for old Cappy artifacts, while Gus pumped some gas for Mayor Blustergas' car.

Suddenly, the ground rumbled, and anyone walking about fell to the ground. Chief Bookum's chair broke and he collapsed on the ground, looking confused. Everyone outside looked up towards the sky to see a huge battleship with a familiar mask on the front just before it vanished into the clouds.

**_ I'm going to be busy over the next month or two, and I'm not sure when I'll be able to update again. But I will try to make it as early as possible._**


	9. Chapter 9

**_Yes! Ha, you all probably thought I was dead or abandoning this story. Don't worry, I don't want that to happen, but I had writers block and whatnot. Thank you for your patience._**

**_I do not own kirby characters mentioned in this fanfiction._**

Soon, Cappy Town was out of sight and all anyone could see out the windows of the Halberd were the billions and billions of stars.

Sword Knight and Blade Knight were walking through the dull brown hallways of the Halberd, heading in the direction of the engine room. During the rebuilding process, the engine had been the most difficult to put back together, and Meta Knight was slightly paranoid about it. So far, it seemed to be functioning normally, but Meta Knight insisted they check on it periodically, just in case. So that was where they were going when they heard something moving. They paused, and looked over at the only door in the hallway. The noise came again, and it sounded like something was being moved around.

Blade looked over at Sword, who nodded. Blade slowly approached the door, drew his sword, and opened the door.

He barely managed to jump out of the way as a whole mass of people fell over each other out the open door.

"Kirby!" Sword exclaimed as the pink puffball rolled out from the closet and landed next to him. Kirby scrambled to his feet and poyo-ed happily at the knight.

Blade went to help Tiff and Tuff to their feet, leaving King Dedede and Escargoon to stand up on their own.

"What are you guys doing here?" Blade asked them. Tiff turned red and looked at the ground in embarrassment, while Tuff felt a drop of sweat go down the back of his neck. Dedede and Escargoon, however, immediately broke into explanation.

"It was his fault, he dragged me here-"

"I'm King! Why shouldn't I be here?"

"Please don't throw us in jail again, we only came down because we-"

"This was on my property, so you can't leave without me!"

"Enough!" Escargoon and Dedede stopped yelling and everyone turned to see that Meta Knight had joined them. Meta Knight looked at each of them before continuing.

"They will have to come with us. We can't turn back at this point." With that, he walked away.

Tiff looked relieved, but Sword was a little confused.

"Does that mean we're almost there?" Sword muttered to Blade. They were on their way back from checking the engine room. The rest of the group was exploring the Halberd.

Blade was about to answer when the ship came to a stop, throwing everyone to the floor.

Sword and Blade scrambled to their feet immediately, and sprinted to the control room, thinking something was wrong. They nearly tripped over some of the others who were still attempting to pick themselves up, but eventually they reached the control room. They opened the door and rushed inside.

"What happened?" Sword asked Meta Knight as he and Blade rushed to their positions on the control panel. Meta Knight gestured out through the screen, and Sword and Blade saw something was blocking their way.

It appeared to be a small puffball creature similar to Meta Knight, with a few exceptions. It had hot pink skin with bright white feet. It wore a mask similar to Meta Knight's, except it had a vertical opening as well as a horizontal one, with golden horns sticking out from either side and scarlet eyes glaring out at them. In one hand the puffball held up a shield, and in the other it wielded a lance with a crooked tip.

"What is that?" Sword asked. Meta Knight looked over at him.

"He is our reason for coming here." Meta Knight pointed at the puffball on the screen. "That is Galacta Knight."

**_Yep, Galacta Knight. How many of you were expecting that? (probably a lot) Sorry for shortness and such. One of the reasons it took so long was because I attempted to make it longer. Didn't work. Ok, so I will probably be a while with next chapter. thanks for reading. :)_**


	10. Chapter 10

_**Hey, I finally updated this story. Yep... I won't keep you from it, so enjoy, I hope...**_

"Galacta Knight?" Sword exclaimed, leaning forward towards the screen to get a closer look at the pink puffball. "You mean the most powerful warrior in the universe? That Galacta Knight?"

"Yes," Meta Knight said shortly, not wanting to go into further detail.

Blade looked confused. "I thought that was just a legend," he said, looking skeptically at the screen.

Before Meta Knight could respond, a bright light began to flash on the control panel. Meta Knight looked and saw it was the communication light, signaling that someone was trying to talk with them. Meta Knight glanced quickly at the number before accepting the call.

A bigger image of Galacta Knight appeared on the screen before them. His red eyes pierced into the room, searching before they rested upon Meta Knight. Meta Knight stared calmly back.

"Meta Knight," Galacta Knight said coldly.

"Galacta Knight," Meta Knight said in the same tone.

At this point, Tiff, Tuff, Kirby, Dedede, and Escargoon had all entered the control room and were watching the scene.

"What brings you here?" Galacta Knight asked.

"Don't act so innocent, Galacta Knight,"Meta Knight snapped. "I know it was you."

"Me?"

"You were the one who raised Jecra, Garlude, and Sir Arthur from their graves to make them come after me, and I want you to call them off."

Galacta Knight's eyes flashed a little in surprise, but that was all the emotion he showed. A silence fell on the Halberd as Galacta Knight thought this over. Meta Knight glared at him impatiently.

Suddenly, Galacta Knight's eyes shone with amusement, and Meta Knight knew he was grinning under his mask.

That's never a good sign.

"I have to admit Meta Knight, you figured out it was me much quicker tha I expected. I suppose I have Jecra to thank for that, and yes, I know that you tortured the information out of Jecra," Galacta Knight interrupted Meta Knight before Meta Knight could put his thought into words. "That was a factor I hadn't counted on, as I assumed you gave up your ruthlessness a long time ago." Meta Knight tensed at this, but Galacta Knight didn't wait for him to say anything before continuing. "However, as I'm sure you know by now, my new minions cannot die, and you certainly can't kill me. If you could, you would have done so a long time ago." Galacta Knight paused long enough to smirk at the masked knight.

"So, clearly, you are at my mercy, and I'm going to keep sending my skeletons until you are finally driven to insanity, killed, or I get a reason stop. I'd prefer it was one of the first two endings, however."

With that, the screen went dark. Galacta Knight had broken off the conversation, and now, on the screen, it showed Galacta Knight as he turned and flew off.

Meta Knight's eyes burned crimson as he slammed his fist down on the control panel in frustration. Sword and Blade looked about ready to strangle someone as well. Tiff looked confused at Meta Knight.

"Who was that, Meta Knight?" Tiff asked. "And what did he mean by minions?"

Meta Knight took a deep, calming breathe, turning his eyes to their normal yellow. He then proceeded to telling those who had just entered the scene about the skeletons that plagued him, and how he'd found out from Jecra that Galacta Knight was behind them and where Meta Knight could find him.

When he concluded his story, he turned to Sword and Blade before anyone could ask any questions he wasn't comfortable answering.

"I was hoping we wouldn't have to resort to this, but I'm afraid it's necessary." Meta Knight said. "We're going to have to go after him and use force." Meta Knight turned to the wheel. "Turn up the engines to full speed, Sword. We're going to have to move fast to catch up to him."

Sword Knight did as he was asked, and then the Halberd rocketed off to pursue Galacta Knight.

_**Sorry about the lateness and such. I want to say I won't keep you waiting on the next chapter, but I just don't know when that'll go up.**_

_**Thanks for reading :)**_


	11. Chapter 11

_**Well that was quick. I bet no one was expecting me to do this so soon. Or maybe you were. I don't know. Anyway, I don't own kirby characters and such. **_

Tiff waited until everyone had left the control room before approaching Meta Knight. She was hoping to get some answers to her questions, but something told her that he wouldn't want to give those answers while the room was filled with a lot of people.

Finally, a little after King Dedede and Escargoon went to raid the kitchen, Sword and Blade were sent to go check the engines again, leaving Tiff and Meta Knight alone in the control room. Tiff seized the opportunity and approached Meta Knight.

"Meta Knight?" The masked knight up from what he was doing long enough to see it had been Tiff who had spoken before turning back.

"Yes?" Tiff hesitated for a split second, and then pressed on.

"Meta Knight, why does that Galacta Knight guy want to send these skeletons after you? You didn't do anything to him, did you? And what did he mean when he said that you weren't able to kill him?"

A silence fell between them. Meta Knight's eyes turned green in thought, debating about how to go about answering this. No, wondering if he _should_ answer this. He took another look a Tiff, and sighed in defeat. Yes, he was going to have to answer her. Meta Knight reached over and put the Halberd on autopilot before turning to Tiff again.

"It was a long time ago, Tiff, but I'll see what I can recall. I take it you remember the legend of the Comet Nova?"

Tiff nodded. "When you collect enough star power, you can summon the Comet and it will grant you one wish."

"Right," Meta Knight replied.

Tiff's eyes narrowed slightly in impatience. "But what does that have to do with Galacta Knight?"

"I'm getting to that, Tiff, if you'll let me finish." Tiff fell silent. Meta Knight paused for a second to make sure she wasn't going to interrupt, and then went on with his story.

"This all started many years ago, before I joined ranks with the Star Warriors. I wanted to improve my strength as a warrior, so I could help the Star Warriors defeat NME's army. It was then I decided to go on a quest to become stronger. I searched the universe, looking for opponents that could present a challenge. After a couple months, however, it didn't seem like anyone could defeat me.

"One day, however, I met an old man in a forest, who told me a tale about a warrior so powerful that the people in the universe had no choice but to seal him away. Many people who wanted to test their strength came to him for a battle, but no one had ever beaten him. It was because of this that people began to fear his power and what he could do with it. Locking him away was the only solution they could think of so people could feel safe once again.

"I knew immediately that this warrior could provide the challenge I was craving. A battle with the strongest warrior in the universe could only improve my strength. The only problem was how to find a way to free him. You see, the old man I met only told me a legend. No one alive actually knew where the warrior's prison was located. It was weeks after pondering this that the answer came to me: the Comet Nova could grant my wish."

"Comet Nova?" Tiff asked in disbelief. "But that's only a legend. The comet doesn't actually exist."

"I assure you, Tiff, that comet is real," Meta Knight said. When Tiff continued to look skeptical, Meta Knight added, "I am a knight of honor. I am not lying to you now, nor will I while I'm telling you this."

Tiff turned red in embarrassment. Of course Meta Knight wouldn't lie to her. "Sorry, go on."

"Thank you. After I realized the answer, I went from planet to planet collecting star power. When I finally had enough, I went to the place in the universe where one can summon Nova. I didn't really know how to summon the comet, so I sat there for a couple of minutes. Then, a bright light appeared before me, and when it cleared, there was the comet. I gave it the star power, and it asked me what my wish was. I wished that I could battle the greatest warrior in the universe. Another bright flash, this one was blinding, and then Galacta Knight stood before me.

"We flew to a deserted planet so our battle wouldn't harm any innocent people, and then we began flying at each other. He was a powerful warrior, and for part of the battle, I thought he was going to win. But eventually, the tides turned and I emerged victorious from our battle. It was then that I learned that Galacta Knight was a rather sore loser. I went to thank him for the battle, but he shoved me away. He then swore revenge against me for taking his title, and flew off.

"Now you see, Tiff. Galacta Knight sent those skeletons so he could have his revenge against me for taking his title. He said I wasn't able to kill him because he proved himself to be too powerful during our battle."

It became quiet after Meta Knight finished his story as Tiff took a minute to let this new information sink in.

"Did that answer your questions?" Meta Knight asked. Tiff nodded and smiled.

"Yes, thanks, Meta Knight."

Suddenly, lights on the ship began to flash red. Meta Knight bolted to the controls and looked over the systems. When he saw what was wrong, he groaned.

"What is it?" Tiff asked, racing to his side.

"That engine!" Meta Knight growled. "It's malfunctioning!"

He began pressing buttons, and managed to put the ship on a course to the closest planet by the time Sword and Blade got back. They raced to their positions.

"What can we do, sir?" Sword asked.

Meta Knight shook his head. "There's nothing left to do but land."

At that moment, the ship entered the planet's atmosphere.

_**I hope you enjoyed me uploading so soon, because it might not happen for the next chapter. Depends on whether or not I have writer's block.**_


	12. Chapter 12

_**hehe, hey... I finished chapter 12...after a couple months. It was almost done at one point, but then something happened and the file was somehow deleted. So here it is :)**_

_**I don't own any characters mentioned in this story **_

To anyone looking up, the Halberd looked like a shooting star.

The giant battleship began to heat up as it entered the atmosphere. On screen, everyone in the control room could see sparks erupting in front of the Halberd until the screen became a wall of fire. The ship shook violently, and everyone on the ship had to grab onto something to stay upright.

BOOM! CRASH!

The ship hit the ground and caused a huge crater to form underneath it. The jolt sent everyone to the floor. Meta Knight picked himself up almost immediately and disappeared out the door of the control room. Sword Knight and Blade Knight followed quickly, with Tiff right behind them.

Tiff stepped outside the ship and for a moment saw nothing but green. Feeling disoriented, she turned to go back inside when she saw Meta Knight standing close by, staring intently at the damage. His blue figure against all of the green allowed Tiff to reorient herself. She realized all the green was coming from the leaves of the trees surrounding the ship. Apparently, they had landed in some kind of forest. There were trees everywhere, and most had other green plants growing up their trunks.

Meta Knight shook his head in defeat at the damage the Halberd had taken. The ship had landed in such a way that the neck of the ship had separated completely from the rest. It would take a very long time to put the ship back together. Not to mention the fact that they still had to fix the engine. Meta Knight couldn't help but feel frustrated. All the time they would use fixing the Halberd was time they could have been using hunting down Galacta Knight.

Sword and Blade walked up to Meta Knight. He turned to them as they approached, and they saw that his eyes were red. Only one thought echoed in their minds at that point.

_Yeah, he's going to kill us._

"What happened to the engine?" Meta Knight asked coldly. Sword and Blade shifted guiltily, avoiding eye contact.

"Well," Sword began slowly, "we went to the engine room like you told us, sir. Blade and I noticed some of the screws were coming loose, so we went to fix them…"

_ Sword and Blade were working on the Halberd's engine. Sword was on the ground working while Blade was working on a platform higher up. Blade finished with the screw he had been tightening and was about to put his wrench away into the toolbox at his side when he saw another screw that was coming undone. He quickly went to tighten it, not realizing that he accidently sent his toolbox over the edge of the platform. _

_ Sword was working on one of the screws when he heard something coming from above him. He glanced up just in time to see a toolbox slam into his face. The toolbox bounced off of Sword and landed on the ground, spilling tools on the floor. Sword groaned in pain, and looked up to see Blade peering down at him. Then, Blade burst into laughter. _

_ "Oh man, that was too good!" Blade snickered. Sword, who had never enjoyed being laughed at, picked up his wrench and threw it at Blade. Blade realized this a second too late as the wrench crashed into his helmet, sending him backwards on his platform. Sword chuckled._

_ "You're right," Sword grinned. "That was pretty funny." _

_ Blade climbed down from his platform and drew his sword. Sword saw this and copied the movement. Then they ran at each other. Sword and Blade swung their swords at the same time and hit each other's hilt with enough force to send both of the swords flying. One sword landed harmlessly on the ground. The other, however, cut into a pipe connecting to the engine. Immediately, red warning lights began to flash. Sword turned to Blade. _

_ "Um… what pipe did we just cut?" Sword asked. _

_ "That was the pipe that keeps us up in the air," Blade said. "We should probably head back to the control room." With that, they picked up their swords and bolted for the control room._

"…And that's what happened," Blade concluded. Meta Knight glared at them.

"Do you two realize the seriousness of the situation?" Meta Knight growled. "Now the Halberd is almost completely destroyed! It will take a long time before the Halberd is even close to being ready to fly, and it's all because you two couldn't control yourselves for two minutes!" Meta Knight's voice got louder with every word until he was shouting. Sword and Blade hung their heads. Tiff, who had been listening, immediately took interest in something in the distance. Ordinarily she'd put in her own say about how irresponsible Sword Knight and Blade Knight had been, but something told her that Meta Knight had it covered. While he continued his lecture, Tiff walked off to check out some more of the forest.

After a couple of minutes of wandering, Tiff began to regret her decision to leave the Halberd. She'd completely forgotten which way she had come. It was certainly taking her longer to get back than it had for her to turn around, and everything looked exactly the same. Suddenly, she heard rustling coming from a shrub next to her. She jumped back from the bush and nearly shrieked when she saw…a bunny. Tiff relaxed, and knelt down to the small creature. It hopped up to her instantly and sniffed her. Tiff smiled at the bunny and reached out to pet it when it suddenly bolted back the way it had come. She sighed and turned to go, but found her way was blocked.

"Hello there."

"Meta Knight, have you seen Tiff?" Tuff asked the knight.

Meta Knight shook his head. "I haven't seen her since we crashed." He looked around. Everyone was helping pick up any pieces of the Halberd they could find that had fallen off. Meta Knight had even convinced Dedede to help, though the king was still grumbling about the work he had to do. Meta Knight hadn't even noticed Tiff wasn't amongst the group. He turned back to Tuff.

"Why don't you help here? I'll go find her and rejoin you shortly." Tuff nodded and went over to Kirby. Meta Knight decided to look in the Halberd.

As soon as he entered the head of the Halberd, he heard a faint beeping coming from the control room. He immediately went to the door and saw the communication button was lighting up. How that was still working was a mystery, but that didn't matter now. He went over and accepted the call. A screen popped up, showing a familiar hot pink puffball.

"Galacta Knight!" Meta Knight growled. Galacta Knight smirked underneath his mask.

"Hello again, Meta Knight. It looks to me like you're in a bit of a fix there." Meta Knight glared at him.

"What is it you want?" he asked.

"Ah, funny you should mention that. It's actually not what I want, but what you want." Galacta Knight moved out of the way, and Meta Knight saw Tiff strapped to a chair. Her eyes shone with fear, and she tried to say something to Meta Knight, but her voice was muffled by a gag.

"Let her go Galacta Knight! She has absolutely nothing to do with this." Galacta Knight came back on screen.

"If you want her back, come and get her," he said. "You know where we are." Then he signed off, leaving Meta Knight staring at a blank screen.

_**Ok not my best, especially after such a long wait, but it's better than nothing right? no? ok, well, I might be late again, august is going to be busy. **_


	13. Chapter 13

**_Hey... Um... here's the next chapter. I know it's been a while, and I apologize for that, but the good news is that this chapter is done. Enjoy if you dare._**

**_I don't own any kirby characters mentioned. _**

"Well we have to go after him!" Tuff yelled. "He has my sister!"

"I wish we could, Tuff," Meta Knight said calmly, "but we can't do anything until we get the Halberd up and running."

The group was sitting around a table inside the Halberd. Meta Knight had just finished explaining what had happened to Tiff to the rest of the group, and Tuff wasn't even bothering to hide his worry over his sister or his anger at Galacta Knight.

"When I get ahold of that pitiful gumball, I'm gonna-"

"Tuff, that's not going to help us get Tiff back," Meta Knight said firmly. Tuff nodded reluctantly and sat down in his chair.

"Thank you." Meta Knight turned to Sword and Blade. "How long do you think it will take for the Halberd to be fixed?"

Sword sighed. "We have all the parts to the outside, but it will take weeks to put together, even if we had everyone working on it."

"Not to mention the fact that we still have to fix the engine," Blade added. Meta Knight sighed.

"Well, we'd better get started then," he said. "Sword, you, Escargoon, Tuff, and Kirby should begin working on putting the outside of the Halberd back together. Blade, Dedede, and I will work on the engine."

"No way!" Dedede shouted, folding his arms and glaring across the table at the knight. "I already picked up the stupid parts that fell off your piece of scrap metal. I ain't doin' anything else."

"Forgive me, your majesty," Meta Knight said coldly, "but I believe it was you who snuck onto my ship, not the other way around. So you will pull your weight when it comes to working, or I will leave you on this planet until our mission is done."

Dedede continued to glare at Meta Knight, but then he remembered the time Meta Knight had kicked his tank off a cliff (A.N. Fans of Kirby Right Back at ya know exactly what I'm talking about ). So he dropped his gaze to the floor.

Everyone worked hard for the next couple of days. Blade and Dedede managed to put all the engine's pieces that had fallen off in the crash back in their places while Meta Knight fixed the broken pipe. Now the entire group was working on putting on the outside, which was proving more difficult than anticipated.

The major problem was getting the head of the ship connected with the rest of it. The group was hoping that against all odds, if they kept shoving at the head, it might budge, and they could move it close enough to begin putting it back together.

After a day of trying, however, Dedede finally stopped and slumped to the ground, breathing heavily.

"I give up," he panted. Meta Knight stopped shoving, glanced at Dedede, and then at the rest of the group. All of them, himself included, were sweating profusely and breathing as heavily as Dedede.

"Alright, this isn't going to work," Meta Knight said, finally acknowledged in defeat. Tuff looked at the old warrior, a panicky expression on his face.

"What about Tiff?" he asked. "We can't just give up!" Meta Knight put a comforting hand on Tuff's shoulder.

"We're not going to give up, Tuff," Meta Knight responded. "We just need a new strategy."

"So maybe we could take a break?" Escargoon asked hopefully.

Meta Knight nodded. "We'll stop for now. We can meet up again later to figure out a new strategy of fixing the Halberd." And with that, he turned and walked away. Everyone else eventually went off to do their own thing. Nobody seemed to notice they were being watched. The figure hiding in the bushes turned and sprinted back into the forest.

"Well? What did you find out?"

"They aren't from here, that's for sure."

"Hostile?"

"Not from what I've seen, though a couple of them are carrying weapons."

"Do you think they're aggressive, Larutan?"

"No. The masked one seemed to be comforting one of the children. They might get defensive, but only if provoked."

"Then why are they here?"

"Their ship is broken. It appears to have crashed." There was a silence, and then a third voice spoke up.

"I know that face, Anna. As your advisor, I must advise against-"

"Helping them?" Another silence fell. "I understand your paranoia, but I can't sit back and do nothing."

"But-"

"I don't want to hear it, Naipotu! Go inform the rest that we'll be leaving shortly." Naipotu nodded reluctantly and walked out.

_**I'm sorry again for the wait. Thanks for reading :)**_


	14. Chapter 14

_**Hey...um...many of you probably don't remember this story, but it still exists! Sorry for leaving it for so long, but I was trying to make it longer. Sadly, I did not succeed. But maybe you can enjoy this anyway? No? Ok.**_

_**So I don't own Kirby characters and such.**_

Meta Knight waited until everyone had shown up in the kitchen before speaking. It didn't take too long. Dedede and Escargoon were already there. The penguin was stuffing his face while his assistant watched him in disgust. Sword and Blade had followed Meta Knight in, so they were only waiting for Tuff and Kirby. Eventually, they entered, Kirby hoping to get some food. Tuff, however, lost his appetite when he felt the grave tension in the room. He sat down at the table where the others were already seated, and Meta Knight took his chance to call for the attention of the room.

"There's no beating around the bush in this situation," he said. He could feel Tuff's eyes on him especially, but he didn't look in his direction. "I checked within a five mile distance around the Halberd, and there is no sign of life anywhere nearby." He took a breath before dropping the bomb on everyone.

"We're stranded here."

Dead silence filled the room. No one knew exactly what to say. Tuff was the first to regain his voice.

"But what about Tiff?" he asked, eyes widening at the thought of his sister spending any more time with the monster who held her captive. Meta Knight looked at him, sighing.

"I wish I could tell you that we can still rescue her," he said. "But unfortunately, we have no means to get to her." He paused, watching as Tuff's expression went from shock to disbelief and anger.

"But there has to somebody here that can help us!" he shouted. Tuff couldn't believe that Meta Knight-the most powerful Star Warrior apart from Kirby, in his opinion- was telling him that he couldn't save his sister.

Meta Knight felt a pang at the young boy's sadness, and felt angry that there was nothing he could do to help him. "I'm sorry, Tuff, but there's not much else we could do besides rebuilding the Halberd, and that would take years even with the proper equipment."

_And Galacta Knight won't wait that long, _he thought bitterly. _He'll kill Tiff and then come for me, and kill everyone else here as well. _

Even though Tuff's hair blocked his eyes, Meta Knight got the feeling they were leering at him. Tuff got up and left the kitchen without another word. Kirby watched him leave, and then followed.

Silence filled the next few minutes, and then Dedede got up from the table, a greedy glint in his eye.

"Since we ain't leavin' here anytime soon, I'm gonna go have a looksee about my new kingdom." With that he walked out, followed closely by Escargoon, whose expression said he would rather do something else. Meta Knight, Sword, and Blade were alone at the table.

"So what're we going to do now, Meta Knight?" Sword asked. Meta Knight was about to answer, when he heard something behind him. Getting out of his seat so fast he knocked the chair over, he turned in the direction of the noise just in time to see something flash in the doorway of the kitchen. He ran after it without a second thought, drawing Galaxia as he went with Sword and Blade right behind him.

Meta Knight continued down the hallways, barely seeing the shadow of something turning the corner as he went. He didn't stop to realize where they were or where they were headed until he turned into the last hallway to see a figure run out the door of the Halberd. Meta Knight didn't stop, though, and continued out the door, hoping to catch the figure before it disappeared into the forest. However, he stopped as he entered the doorway.

What looked like a whole army was standing right outside the entrance of the Halberd.

_**Oh no, another cliff hanger! So, I started writing the next chapter already, and I know I say this a lot, but I might not take so long with this update, if writer's block allows. Thanks for sticking with it so far :)**_


	15. Chapter 15

_**Hey, I know this is a short chapter for such a long absence, but I needed to get this chapter out today, or you would have to wait an extra couple of weeks for it. Sorry for the wait. I hope you enjoy! :)**_

_**I don't own Kirby characters! **_

They had their weapons out, but did not attack immediately. Meta Knight seized this opportunity to give an order.

"Sword, Blade, go gather the others and wait on the ship," Meta Knight muttered. Sword and Blade started to protest, but Meta Knight cut them off. "That's an order." Sword and Blade looked reluctant, but they set off at the first glance of Meta Knight's glare.

Meta Knight walked outside slowly, Galaxia still ready in his hand. The archers in the group pulled the strings of their bows back, but didn't point them at him, leaving the arrows pointing at the ground. There were people who had their hands on the hilt of their swords, but didn't draw them. Meta Knight saw all of this as he approached, so he dropped Galaxia in turn so he too was aiming at the ground, but he kept his guard up, watching for any aggressive movements. There was no need, however. People moved out of his way as he went, staring whispering a little as he passed, but he could sense that it was more out of curiosity than anything else.

He reached the back of the group, where three people stood as if waiting for him. There was a young woman standing in the middle, while a male and a female stood protectively on either side of her. Meta Knight could tell that woman in the middle was probably their leader.

She was taller than Meta Knight, but would have been shorter than Sword and Blade, and she looked a little like Tiff, except she was older, though not by too much. She had long brown hair decorated with flowers that formed a crown on her head. She wore a green dress that matched the color of the forest surrounding them, and Meta Knight noticed a small dagger hanging down the left side of her dress. She stared down at him with soft blue eyes before speaking.

"Hello," she began. The woman sounded friendly enough, but Meta Knight could hear the caution in her voice, not that it was unfounded "I hope you'll forgive us if we're intruding upon your evening."

"Not at all," he replied coolly.

"My name is Anna, and I am the leader of these people," she said, gesturing around at the group behind Meta Knight. "And who, may I ask, are you?"

Meta Knight considered her for a moment before answering. "I am Meta Knight. My friends and I were traveling when we found ourselves on your planet."

Anna looked past him at the Halberd. "It looks like you had a difficult landing." When Meta Knight didn't respond, she continued. "We heard the crash when you first landed. Many of our people thought it was an earthquake. Our tribe hasn't had outsiders here in generations. They are very curious."

Meta Knight looked around, and then spoke. "I looked around a couple of days ago, and there were no signs that anyone lived here."

Anna nodded. "We know how to hide. It's good to know that our defenses work. They haven't had much practice, as I mentioned. Actually, we would be fascinated to hear your tale, perhaps over dinner in our home?"

"Absolutely not!" Anna and Meta Knight turned to look at the speaker. It was the man who had been standing next to Anna. He was much older and taller than Anna, with jet black hair that was beginning to grey and dark brown eyes. He wore the same shade of green that Anna was wearing on his tunic, which was decorated with badges. He and the other female had remained silent throughout the exchange, but now the man looked more irritated than uncomfortable.

"Anna, we do not allow outsiders into our home. You should know better than that." Anna turned to him, looking just as irritated as he did.

"Naipotu, I will not have my judgments questioned," she said coldly. "Besides, you have said yourself that those rules were meant more as guidelines." Naipotu looked down awkwardly, humiliated by having his own words used against him. Anna smirked, knowing she had won, and then turned back to Meta Knight. "You'll have to forgive him. He can be a stickler for the rules when he wants to be." She gestured to the female on her other side. "This is Laturan, by the way. She is my lieutenant. Naipotu is my advisor."

Meta Knight nodded to both of them. "It's a pleasure to meet both of you. Of course we would be happy to join you for dinner."

_**Sorry again that I made you wait, and for this short chapter. **_


	16. Chapter 16

_**Hey I'm back! Sorry this took so long... again. I keep trying to make them longer, which ends up making me take longer, and I'll just stop making excuses and let you read on. **_

_**Unfortunately, I still don't own Kirby characters, especially Meta Knight. **_

"That is a fascinating tale, Meta Knight," Anna said with a smile.

The group, along with all the members of Anna's tribe, was seated around a large table, eating food and talking with each other. Kirby and King Dedede were gulping down food like there was no tomorrow, and Escargoon tried to ignore the king's horrid table manners as he ate. Tuff was chattering away with another boy around his age from Anna's tribe. Meta Knight, Sword, and Blade sat up front with Anna, Naipotu, and Laturan. Meta Knight had just finished explaining the events that had led them to this planet.

"So you have no way of getting to this Galacta Knight?" Laturan asked.

Meta Knight shook his head. "Without proper equipment, the Halberd cannot be fixed."

"Which also means there's no way of getting to Tiff," Sword added.

"Well, we'd be happy to let you all stay here until you think of something," Anna said with a smile. Naipotu made a small noise of protest, but Anna silenced him with a look.

"Thank you, that is very kind of you," Meta Knight said. The past few nights they had stayed on the Halberd, but the rooms were closest to the opening in the ship. That wouldn't have been a problem, but last night it had poured rain, and the water had flooded a couple of the rooms.

After dinner, they were taken to their rooms, and eventually they all drifted off to sleep. Meta Knight, however, was woken up after what seemed like a minute by someone poking him. He turned to find himself face-to-face with Anna. She put a finger to her lips so he would remain quiet, and then made a gesture to follow her. He did so, and they exited the room and began walking. Meta Knight quickened his pace to catch up to Anna.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

"I think I can help you with your quest," she said, but though Meta Knight asked more questions, that was the only thing she said until they reached a hallway with a dead end. Anna approached the wall, looked around, and then pressed her hand to it. Instantly, the wall moved, making a rumbling noise as it created a kind of doorway. Anna turned and smiled at Meta Knight, who was gaping at the wall behind his mask.

"After you," she said. Meta Knight hesitated a moment, but then decided to trust her, and stepped through the wall. Anna quickly followed, and the doorway closed behind them.

They were engulfed in darkness for a few moments, but then Anna turned on a switch, and light spread around the room. Meta Knight was blinded for a second, due to the sudden changes of lighting. When he had adjusted, his focus went to the thing in the center of the room. What was there surprised him even more.

_**Such a short chapter for such a long wait. That's another thing to apologize for. But I'll get the next chapter up as soon as I can.**_


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